


For You, Always

by kibumy



Category: SHINee
Genre: Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-22
Updated: 2017-03-22
Packaged: 2018-10-09 02:46:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10401996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kibumy/pseuds/kibumy
Summary: Kibum is feeling down after a few mistakes onstage. Minho to the rescue.





	

Kibum could feel a lump in his throat forming the minute he stepped off stage. He was completely frustrated and disappointed in his performance that night, and it seemed like everything that could’ve gone wrong went wrong. First, it was his in-ear malfunctioning mid-song, causing him to lose track of the song due to not being able to hear himself. After that, he suffered a wardrobe malfunction that caused the seam on his jeans to embarrassingly rip in front of the entire crowd. To top it all off, during the final song of the night, Kibum missed his placement for a dance number, causing a shift in the entire stage performance. Each mistake bounced off of the next, causing him to be more flustered with each passing moment.

The members noticed he had shown signs of being distressed on stage after his second mistake and got the entire crowd to chant “It’s okay! It’s okay!” for him, and it did help calm him for the time being, but that third accident sent him over the edge. Kibum swallowed his tears and avoided conversation and eye contact with anyone as he changed out of his concert clothes and into his casual ones in the dressing room. He felt like he had let them down tonight, and if he were to make eye contact with anyone in that room, he’s sure he would break down into tears. Kibum changed a little too quickly, and ended up waiting silently by the door of the dressing room for the other members to finish so they could leave.

Minho watched Kibum play with the small chains attached to the Louis Vuitton bag on his lap quietly while a coordi noona gathered his casual clothes. When it was time for them to head out into the van, Minho gave Kibum some space for him to breathe some fresh air before ushering in the small vehicle behind him. Kibum sat in the back with his head against the window, watching the scenery pass by while the rest of the van was quite chatty about the recent concert. Minho wasn’t the only one to notice Kibum’s change in mood, but the members all knew he needed time to himself. Kibum’s situation was relatable, and in times like this, they’d want to be left alone, too.

Arriving at their Tokyo dorm, Kibum passed by his shared bedroom and locked himself in the bathroom– the only place he could be alone for a few minutes to collect his thoughts. By the time he heard the lock click, a wave of emotion rushed over the man, and he was unable to hold his tears back any longer. He leaned over the sink as big tears swept down his face, plopping into the dry sink. His knuckles turned white as he clenched the countertop, recalling the humiliation he endured that night, afraid to face the other members in fear of seeing their own disappointment in him. He stifled a sob and bit his knuckle, taking deep, staggered breaths to try and gain control of his emotions as more tears rolled down his reddened cheeks.

A few more minutes of woeful crying and sniffling, Kibum rummaged around in the bathroom for some tissues as he tried his best to dry his tears. He tried to make it look like he hadn’t just been quietly sobbing to himself, but he couldn’t do much about his swollen eyes. After doing some preparation and counting down from three, Kibum opened the door in attempt to scurry into his room and hide under the covers before anyone could see him, but that motive had been stopped short as his eyes met Minho’s as soon as the bathroom door opened. Kibum gasped, not expecting the taller man to be standing right there, and quickly averted his gaze.

“S-sorry…” Kibum muttered as he tried to slip past Minho, but the younger man caught him by the arm and pulled him into a warm embrace. Kibum was shocked by the expression of sympathy, even though he knew he should be used to this sort of thing by now. Minho cared a lot for people, including Kibum.

They stay like that for a while, Kibum’s arms loosely draped around Minho’s torso, cheek rested upon his shoulder. Minho’s arms were wrapped tightly around his bandmates waist in a firm but gentle hug. Kibum closed his eyes and took shaky breaths, focusing on choking back more tears. Minho moved his hand up and ran his it through Kibum’s hair slowly, matching his own breaths to Kibum’s, who had now buried his face into the other’s shoulder. The taller man felt more tears staining his sweatshirt as he held him until his shaking subsided and his breathing pattern returned to normal.

Pulling away from the embrace in the dark hallway, Minho finally made eye contact with his friend. Kibum didn’t smile; he just stood there, expecting to endure an embarrassing talk about what happened, feebly reaching up to try and wipe away the tears and snot that were left on his shoulder. Minho did not say a word, but looked at him softly, a warm smile appearing on his lips as he ran his fingers through Kibum’s brunette locks once again, moving down to wipe at the tears under his eyes with his thumb.

Minho ushered Kibum to his own room without saying anything, and dug through the drawers until he found an oversized t-shirt and sweatpants, handing them to Kibum to put on. His bandmate took them carefully and put them on without objection. Pulling back the covers of his own bed, Minho motioned for Kibum to crawl in, which he did. Minho got in after him, and the two lay propped up by the pillows, wrapping an arm around the man’s shoulders and motioning for Kibum to come closer. With his free hand, Minho reached into his sweatpants pocket and pulled out his phone.

“I’ve got something I want to show you,” Minho voiced, opening his photos and scrolling back a few days. “Remember when I came to visit you at your apartment a few days ago?”

Kibum nodded, confused as to where his friend was going with this conversation. He watched Minho scroll and scroll before stopping and backtracking for a second, tapping on the first of a series of small thumbnails. A picture of Comme Des, one of Kibum’s dogs, popped up onto the screen. The canine was laying on his back with a playful look on his little puppy face, tail blurry from wagging fast.

“I took these while you were making dinner that night, aren’t they cute?” Minho smiled, scrolling forward to another picture. This next one was of Garcons, his other dog, with his favorite squeaky toy in his mouth. “He would not stop trying to get me to play tug-of-war with him. He’s little, but damn, he’s strong.”

Kibum giggled softly, imagining muscular and tough Minho getting dragged around by his tiny poodle. Minho swiped again and again to reveal more secret photos of his dogs, before stopping on another one. This one was a selfie of Minho laying on the floor with Comme Des and Garcons both asleep on his chest. He sported a huge cheeky grin on his face, flashing a little heart to the camera.

Kibum smiled and grabbed the phone out of Minho’s hand to zoom in on Minho’s face. “I like this picture…” He whispered, staring at Minho’s grin and heart.

They stayed wrapped up in Minho’s bed for a while after that, scrolling at the pictures of his dogs, and then at a few selfies and candid pictures of the other members before Kibum dozed off, head resting on his shoulder. Minho beamed at Kibum snoozing, happy at his success in making him smile. He wanted Kibum to fall asleep without carrying the stress and negativity from the night on his shoulders, and from the looks of it, he was out like a light. Minho reached his arm to his bedside light, clicking it off before getting comfy and snuggling up to his best friend, wrapping his arm around him for comfort.

Kibum awoke the next morning dazed and confused as to where he’d fallen asleep. Sitting up, the memories came back to him of Minho and the pictures of his puppies, making smile to himself. Next to him, the sheets were ruffled as if someone had been sleeping there, but no one was to be found. The clock read 8:40am, meaning the other members were not up yet besides the one who had shared the bed with him. Pulling himself out of covers, Kibum quietly made his way out of the bedroom towards the kitchen, where he found Minho preparing breakfast on the stove, not noticing he’d entered the room. He approached Minho closer and closer before leaning in behind him to place a quick, soft kiss on his cheek. Kibum pulled away fast as Minho froze in the middle of scrambling some eggs, a deep blush appearing from his cheeks to the tips of his ears.

“Thanks for last night… it really helped,” Kibum flushed, looking down and twiddling his thumbs. Minho twisted the knob on the stove, turning it off. He turned to Kibum who had looked up to meet his gaze, and smiled softly. Reaching over, Minho wrapped his arm around Kibum’s waist and pulled it towards his own, pressing his forehead against the shorter man’s. His free hand took ahold of Kibum’s, intertwining their fingers.

“For you, always.”


End file.
